Chapter 6 Summary

The badger remains in the burrow with her cubs for three days after capturing the prairie dog. Now, she's hungry again. About 100 feet from the den, she catches the same tantalizing scent as before. She finds the spot where sardines are buried under the ground. Gingerly she digs one of the tiny, silvery fish up and gobbles it down. Digging again, she finds another fish, but the ground feels like it is sinking. Instinctively, she jerks back her paw.

The badger's reflexes are not quite quick enough. The steel jaws of the trap have snapped closed, catching the two outer toes of her right front foot. Growling, shrieking and snarling, she fights the trap, trying in vain to open it. She snarls and bites the steel and the rocks supporting it. All through the night, she continues to fight the trap, in agony...